Development of Autonomous Robots - Essay Example

Development of Autonomous Robots and its Impacts on People’s Lives Name Institution Course Professor Date Introduction Autonomous robots can be applied to various fields in the society. It can be used for military purposes, entertainment, medical and healthcare, and personal care. Until now, robots have been used successful in controlled environments like a factory. In uncontrolled environments, robots have only conducted sophisticated manipulation work when human beings operate them (Kemp, Edsinger & Torres-Jara 2007, p. 20). Robots have for a long time been considered as mechanical workers that can help people in their daily lives. The success at which robots have been used in factories points to the possibility that robots will be part of our lives by providing physical assistance at homes, work or hospitals. This essay discusses how the development of autonomous robots will positively and negatively impact and change human lives. It includes a brief history of robotic developments, barriers to the use of robots, current and future trends of robotic development. History of Robotics Development Robotics has been an essential component in the production industry since 20th century. The field is increasingly growing with autonomous robots capable of operating on their own are being developed. The history of robotics development is intertwined with that of technology and science. As technology is used in electricity, hydraulics, and computing, then all these can be considered as constituting robotics history. In general, personalities such as Jacques de Vancanson and Leonardo da Vinci hugely influenced the robotics industry as they both attempted to create robots. In 1495, Leonardo da Vinci design a clockwork knight but there is no certainty that the robot was built. Nevertheless, Leonardo’s design constituted the foremost humanoid robot (Krishnan 2009, p. 14). In 1737, Jacques de Vaucanson, the French Inventor, built a clockwork duck which has capability to flap its wings, quack, eat and digest food (Appendix 1). They were among the major ideological changes that shifted the world to a mechanistic world view from a natural one. In 1961, at the General Motors, UNIMATE- first industrial robot was installed. Use of Autonomous Robots Autonomous robots are helpful in a number of sectors in the economy. In a busy setting such as a hospital, autonomous robots can be used to expeditiously deliver patients and lab results (RobotWorx 2014). With no traditional guidance, they can navigate hallways in a hospital and stop at destinations having patients’ samples and collect them to the laboratory. Military is another sector that autonomous robots can be used. These robots can assist in performing tasks that are complex to human soldiers and in dangerous environments such as Mars. They can collect data and perform experiments in these dangerous environments and relay the results back to human beings. Technologies are fast emerging and advancing. For this reason, human beings and robots relationship is evolving. In fact, autonomous robots are capable of replacing human and act as automated customer representative. They can also be capable of understanding the emotion inherent in a person voice hence act appropriately. The trends towards increase involvement of autonomous robots in industrial processes will enable increase customer experience and productivity of companies hence gaining competitive advantage (RobotWorx 2014). Barriers to the use of Autonomous Robots Autonomous robots are increasingly developed and thought to offer human beings greatest benefits in a number of fields. However, this may not be realised fully if the existing barriers to use of autonomous robots are not fully addressed. Acceptance is a huge hindrance to the use of autonomous robots as most people do not fully trust robots at the moment without any justifiable reason. Cost is another element as most commercially available robots are very expensive hence its use is limited. Developing a new robot takes a relatively long time hence their demand outpace supply by a far margin. In order for autonomous robots to be used widely, they must be widely available and supply meets the demand. Reliability of autonomous robots is another issue affecting its use. While improvements are continuously done, most robots are still characterised by electronic and mechanical failures, short-lived power sources and cognitive breakdowns (Stormont 2007, p. 23). In successfully overcoming barriers that hinders use of autonomous aircraft, technological, regulation and certification, and behaviour of non-deterministic systems should be addressed. Technological barriers include difficulty that is associated with characterisation and predicting systems behaviour that are capable of adapting to the changing conditions. Moreover, the capability of systems to carry out operations independent of human operators is presently being limited by perceptual, machine sensory, and cognitive systems capabilities (Science Daily 2014). It is vital to develop strategies to overcoming all these barriers in order to fully take advantage that autonomous robots offer to human lives. Positive Impacts of Autonomous Robots Autonomous robots are mobile machines capable of making decisions with no human intervention (Lin, Bekey, & Abney 2009, p. 49). A fully autonomous robot has the ability of gaining information concerning the environment and can work for an extended period of time with no human intervention. Furthermore, it avoids situations that can harm itself, people or property. These robots can replace war human soldiers that are increasingly used to conduct dangerous missions such as patrolling waterways, guarding borders, clearing areas with improvised explosive devices and surveying damages caused by biochemical weapons. Unlike most software agents, robots are operating under constraints of real-time, real-world settings where control of effectors and sensors possessing specific physical characteristics are needed (Kramer & Scheutz 2007, p. 101). Development of autonomous robots which are capable of processing information and providing responses quickly in situations that warrant those decisions eliminates the problem that human beings possesses. It is a fact that Homo sapiens have fallible and limited cognitive capabilities that autonomous robots have advantage over human beings hence their ability to deal with conflicts that have increased tempo. Autonomous robots are increasingly used by many militaries all over the world. In battle fields, robots are immune to challenges such as low morale, fatigue, perceptual, sleep deprivation and communication that are inherent characteristics of soldiers (Lin, Bekey, & Abney 2009, p. 49). Moreover, robots are not affected with stress, adrenaline and emotions that lead soldiers to deliberately overstep engagement rules and commit serious atrocities such as war crimes. In this case, news reports that soldiers have brutalised foreign civilians or enemy combatants as an act of revenge- unlawful act that often carries huge political cost may not exist anymore. The positive advantage about using autonomous robots in warfare is that they can act as unblinking, objective observers that reports to command centre any unethical behaviour that soldiers may undertake (Lin, Bekey, & Abney 2009, p. 49). In fact, the mere presence of these robots would discourage unlawful and unwarranted atrocities to be carried out in the first place. Autonomous robots have superior capabilities, efficiency and effectiveness as compared to humans hence more lives can be saved by them during frenetic conflicts. The idea of autonomous robots development can be applied to assist people who are aged or with disabilities. In most industrialized countries, the population is becoming older with the average lifespan increasing and birth rate decreasing. In this case, there is a growing enormous cost used in providing care to the elderly population. Development of autonomous robots can help bring down this cost as they can be used in assisting disable and elderly people in their daily activities. The aim of developing autonomous robots for assisting elderly people is to produce robots having ability of being commanded through gestures and/or natural speech to bring items such as food in refrigerators, assist with feeding, dressing, going to toilet and turning appliances on or off (Bekey 2008, p. 511). A module that can recognise voice would enable individuals with disabilities or those who are aged to request robot to carry out any desired tasks (Bloss 2008, p. 104). These robots can be also developed to sense emergency situations hence signalling for help in assisting individuals under personal care development. Development of autonomous robots is expected to have positive impact on societies- both economically and functionally. Drones are one area robotics will assist in transforming the society in the coming decades in a positive manner. In fact, mine detectors and robot drones are among the common devices that are used in battlefield albeit control by human beings (Dean 2008). Principally, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) are used by military but a growing demand is being registered in non-militarised environment such as border control, fire fighting, pollution control, search and rescue missions, and ground traffic surveillance (Lewis 2014). It is also being strongly recognised that UAS that are lightweight and with low altitude can be valuable in providing solutions to commercial ventures such as mapping, logistics, farming and real-estate sales. Appendix (2) shows how demand of drones has increased both for civilian and military purposes. The potential benefits of drones are vast but their benefits have already been felt in many parts of the world. For example, drones are already being used for protecting wildlife in Africa; they are used in Germany for providing prescription drug delivery; for monitoring drug trafficking; and are for used in various States for border control (Lewis 2014). The issue that should concern stakeholders is how these benefits can be integrated and managed for society to fully realise the full potential of autonomous robots. In general, robots are manufactured to accomplish certain appointed tasks. Driverless cars have been produced and are expected to be commercially available in the next few years. The self-driving cars developed by Google are autonomous vehicles that will certainly have long-term impacts on how human beings will commute. There is also likelihood that autonomous vehicles will sharply reduce traffic accidents which mainly occur due to human error (Lewis 2014). In addition, autonomous vehicles have potential of fundamentally altering the transportation systems by lowering emissions, saving fuel, averting deadly crashes, and providing mobility to disabled and elderly persons in the society. Development of autonomous robots represents huge opportunities that will have positive effect in the society. As technologies are increasingly integrated into people’s daily lives, the benefits also become more apparent. Negative and Undesirable Impacts of Autonomous Robots Technology is a double-edge sword having both benefits and disadvantages. Autonomous robots used for military purpose is no exception. The risks and worries range from who take responsibility in situations where unintended harm occurs; serious malfunctioning of robots; to hacking of such military robots. It is not clear who should take the responsibility in cases where autonomous robots used for military purposes cause unauthorized harms or for improper conduct (regardless of being intentional or because of error). Asaro (2007, cited in (Lin, Bekey, & Abney 2009, p. 55) explains that it is unclear whether responsibility rests with the designers of autonomous robots, manufacturer, field commander, procurement officer or robot supervisor/controller or still robot itself. In furtherance of this downside of autonomous use of robots for warfare is the issue where robot refuses to take order. Robot may refuse to obey a certain order due to malfunction or otherwise hence causing undesired effects such as defeat by the enemy or injuries to the wrong targets. It is not clear where the responsibility lies in such a case. Robots capable of performing tasks on their own are continuously being developed with robots having ability to kill are considered to be developed in the coming years. It is with no doubt that such robot will have negative effects. Although such machines mean that human soldiers will avoid dangerous environments, the negative effect is that robots would make decisions that are highly nuanced on their own (Gayle 2012). In this case, unexpected fatalities can occur as they may not be capable of distinguishing between combatants and civilians in a war front. Hacking is unethical behaviour that is associated with advancement in technology. It is a concern in development of autonomous robots that can be used for military purposes. A robot is useful when it can operate and access difficult environments that human beings are incapable of operating in (Lin 2011, p. 08). As robots become more networked, the issue of hacking becomes a major concern. There is a possibility that hackers can interfere with robots in a warfront by diverting their set priorities hence bringing harm to the wrong targets. In this case, autonomous robots impact negatively on human lives. Current Trends in Development of Autonomous Robots Autonomous robots bring fear, excitement, and hope in people’s minds. Robots have technological applications that may contribute hugely to human welfare in a number of ways in the coming years. Although potentials benefits that autonomous robot would bring are many, the potential danger to humanity of these machines cannot be overlooked. Robots are mostly applied and used for military purposes and in aviation and transportation industry. Currently, robots are used to perform jobs that are dangerous, boring or tasks requiring more precision, speed or endurance that human beings cannot provide (Noor 2011). These robots are capable of performing all the painting, assembly and welding tasks that hugely characterised the automotive industry. Future Trends in Robotics Development The trends that will characterised the future robotics industry are development of space robotics, robotic vehicles, personal and service robots, walking and humanoid robots, networked robots and robots used for medical and biological applications (Deb 2010, p. 538). Robotic vehicles are machines that are autonomous and mostly not manned but are fitted with good communication systems. Robotic vehicles are widely used for military, defence, ocean exploration and coastal monitoring purposes (Deb 2010, p. 538). Space robots are important in hazardous environments especially in exploring other planets apart from Earth. Space shuttles which are controlled remotely by astronauts can be replaced by space robots. They can collect rock and soil samples from planets such as Mars and Jupiter for deliberation by scientists. Besides autonomous robots used for industrial purposes, personal and service robots are gaining popularity because of the societal needs. Personal robots can be used for assisting people, educating and for entertaining at homes. On the other hand, service robots can be applied in areas such as forestry, waste disposal, security and mining. Convergence of technologies that involves intelligent interfaces, communication and computing with autonomous robots points to the possibility of autonomous robots becoming the next disruptive technology (Noor 2011). There is a chance that autonomous robots that can carry out complex medical procedures that include surgery on patients in remote or dangerous locations such as battlefields will be developed. Medical robotics has great potential of revolutionising the clinical practice in various ways. They can facilitate medical processes through their precise guidance of diagnostic tools and equipment for therapy and diagnosis (Lewis 2014). Furthermore, they can improve overall quality and safety of medical surgery and enhancement of cost-effective patient care. Surgical robots have potential of improving the accuracy of surgery procedures hence reducing the rates of complications in surgeries. Challenges to Development of Autonomous Robots Although the future looks promising as far as future trends pertaining to development of autonomous robots is concern, there are challenges and issues that may hinder their successful development. Jarvis (2008, p. 23) pointed out that there is need for improvements in robot platforms mechanisms in terms of its capability, weight and strength. This is due to the fact that the future would be characterised by many complexities hence requiring robots to have mechanisms that withstands these changes. Moreover, as robots will play a major role in human lives, there is need for development of robotic ethics. This will guide how they will interact with human beings, their performance and more importantly issue of responsibility in cases where they malfunction. In general, autonomous robots are moving towards a point where they are capable of operating reliably in all environments including the challenging ones. It is for a fact though that having robots that can possess sophisticated reasoning concerning the environment is an achievement that will materialised not anytime soon. For example, there is need for much more development of robotic cognitive abilities of before a robot can have capability of deciding whether an individual approaching has hostile intention or not. In my own view, I think that the main obstacle to development of fully autonomous robots pertains to human trust and not so much on technical perspective (even though robotic intelligence still requires much development). The biggest question is whether human beings are ready to unanimously and unilaterally accept the potential effects of having armed autonomous robots. Conclusion The future pertaining to development of autonomous robots looks promising and society have a reason to expect positive changes in the way activities would be conducted. Robots are increasing utilised in various sectors of the society. Militaries are using autonomous robots to navigate dangerous environments that human soldiers are incapable of traversing. In factories, robots are helping in fixing equipments and various appliances. In hospitals, development of autonomous is thought to revolutionise how healthcare is administered as they can be used to provide assistance in laboratories and in medical surgeries. In personal care, robots are capable of providing assistance to elderly and disabled persons in the society. The negative impacts of autonomous robots in society include possibilities of hacking where robots are used in battlefields. Overall, the development of autonomous robots would bring positive impacts on human lives by helping people in various sectors of the economy. Appendices Appendix 1: Jacques de Vaucanson clockwork duck Appendix 2 References Bekey, G. A. 2005, Autonomous robots: From biological inspiration to implementation and control. MIT Press, Cambridge. Bloss, R 2008, "Simultaneous sensing of location and mapping for autonomous robots", Sensor Review, vol. 28, no. 2 pp.102 – 107. Dean, C 2008, ‘A Soldier, Taking Orders From Its Ethical Judgment Centre’, New York Times, 24 November, accessed 12 Nov 2014 >http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/25/science/25robots.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2235680/Rise-Machines-Autonomous-killer-robots-developed-20-years.htmlhttp://robotenomics.com/2014/04/23/5-areas-in-robotics-that-will-transform-society-and-their-economic-impact/https://www.asme.org/engineering-topics/articles/robotics/robotics-present-state-future-trendshttp://www.robots.com/articles/viewing/what-are-autonomous-robots http://ieee-stc.org/proceedings/2007/pdfs/DPS1830.pdf Read More